How big are wind turbines?

The average new onshore turbine in 2025

Tip height is the hub height plus half the rotor. The newest year can still change as the registers add turbines.

How they've grown

A turbine's rating is the most power it can make; a bigger rotor catches more wind, and a taller tower reaches steadier, stronger wind higher up. All three have grown since 2000. The rotor counts most, as the area its blades sweep grows with the square of their length: in Germany, 2025's 153 m rotors sweep 4.1 times the area of 2005's 76 m ones, while the rating grew 3.1 times.

United StatesGermanySwedenCanada

United StatesGermanySwedenCanada

United StatesGermanySwedenCanada

How we count

Each year is the average of the onshore turbines that came online that year, each turbine counting once, from each country's register of turbines. A year with fewer than 20 turbines isn't shown. Offshore turbines are left out: too few farms open each year in these countries to average.

Registers: US Wind Turbine Database (United States) · Marktstammdatenregister (Germany) · Vindbrukskollen (Sweden) · Canadian Wind Turbine Database (Canada)

The figures agree with the countries' own reports: for turbines that came online in 2023, ours give the United States 3.44 MW, a 134 m rotor and a 103 m hub, against Berkeley Lab's 3.4 MW, 133.8 m and 103.4 m, and Sweden 5.87 MW and a 161 m rotor, against IEA Wind's 5.8 MW and 159 m. For Germany in 2025, ours give 5.54 MW against 5.46 MW in Fachagentur Wind und Solar's yearly report.

Other countries' registers don't record each turbine, so China, India and Brazil, among the biggest markets, aren't here.

United States, year by year

Year	Turbines	Rating	Rotor	Hub height
2025	1,758	3.81 MW	142 m	100 m
2024	1,130	3.52 MW	137 m	107 m
2023	1,901	3.44 MW	135 m	103 m
2022	2,654	3.33 MW	133 m	99 m
2021	4,457	3.03 MW	128 m	94 m
2020	6,149	2.84 MW	127 m	91 m
2019	3,568	2.55 MW	121 m	90 m
2018	3,056	2.45 MW	116 m	88 m
2017	4,345	2.10 MW	106 m	84 m
2016	3,765	2.15 MW	108 m	83 m
2015	4,310	2.01 MW	103 m	83 m
2014	2,389	1.92 MW	99 m	83 m
2013	654	1.91 MW	98 m	80 m
2012	6,392	1.92 MW	95 m	84 m
2011	3,608	2.00 MW	94 m	81 m
2010	2,999	1.76 MW	86 m	79 m
2009	5,714	1.75 MW	84 m	79 m
2008	4,528	1.67 MW	84 m	78 m
2007	2,953	1.64 MW	81 m	78 m
2006	989	1.57 MW	79 m	75 m
2005	1,135	1.51 MW	81 m	74 m
2004	75	1.10 MW	59 m	66 m
2003	944	1.60 MW	78 m	72 m
2002	325	0.96 MW	55 m	65 m
2001	1,761	0.90 MW	55 m	58 m
2000	29	0.83 MW	48 m	60 m

Germany, year by year

Year	Turbines	Rating	Rotor	Hub height
2025	923	5.54 MW	153 m	147 m
2024	603	5.13 MW	147 m	145 m
2023	716	4.88 MW	143 m	137 m
2022	465	4.50 MW	139 m	140 m
2021	458	4.03 MW	134 m	140 m
2020	336	3.50 MW	125 m	137 m
2019	285	3.48 MW	123 m	134 m
2018	617	3.21 MW	118 m	132 m
2017	1,663	3.00 MW	114 m	130 m
2016	1,407	2.86 MW	110 m	128 m
2015	1,351	2.78 MW	106 m	124 m
2014	1,608	2.74 MW	101 m	118 m
2013	1,131	2.66 MW	96 m	116 m
2012	990	2.46 MW	89 m	114 m
2011	858	2.25 MW	85 m	106 m
2010	671	2.08 MW	82 m	103 m
2009	1,349	2.11 MW	82 m	97 m
2008	333	1.99 MW	81 m	97 m
2007	826	1.91 MW	77 m	93 m
2006	1,114	1.92 MW	79 m	93 m
2005	1,046	1.76 MW	76 m	91 m
2004	992	1.84 MW	77 m	94 m
2003	1,523	1.65 MW	73 m	88 m
2002	1,752	1.54 MW	71 m	84 m
2001	1,445	1.35 MW	64 m	75 m
2000	1,003	1.31 MW	63 m	79 m

Sweden, year by year

Year	Turbines	Rating	Rotor	Hub height
2025	242	6.55 MW	164 m	134 m
2024	81	5.79 MW	158 m	113 m
2023	230	5.87 MW	161 m	119 m
2022	362	5.50 MW	159 m	129 m
2021	464	4.57 MW	144 m	123 m
2020	359	4.24 MW	142 m	135 m
2019	405	3.79 MW	131 m	119 m
2018	360	3.57 MW	132 m	125 m
2017	50	2.90 MW	115 m	117 m
2016	170	2.99 MW	98 m	102 m
2015	297	2.99 MW	112 m	111 m
2014	257	2.59 MW	104 m	104 m
2013	309	2.36 MW	98 m	107 m
2012	367	2.31 MW	97 m	99 m
2011	370	2.12 MW	88 m	97 m
2010	255	1.93 MW	86 m	94 m
2009	203	1.84 MW	82 m	86 m
2008	117	1.70 MW	74 m	81 m
2007	88	1.23 MW	64 m	72 m
2006	55	1.39 MW	68 m	80 m
2005	62	1.11 MW	59 m	73 m
2004	55	1.06 MW	60 m	68 m
2003	60	0.80 MW	50 m	63 m
2002	59	1.20 MW	60 m	65 m
2001	39	0.73 MW	48 m	52 m
2000	42	0.67 MW	47 m	56 m

Canada, year by year

Year	Turbines	Rating	Rotor	Hub height
2025	93	5.40 MW	150 m	104 m
2024	275	5.48 MW	157 m	106 m
2023	250	4.82 MW	148 m	106 m
2022	234	4.80 MW	147 m	101 m
2021	89	4.16 MW	140 m	110 m
2020	33	4.09 MW	134 m	91 m
2019	221	3.47 MW	134 m	117 m
2018	175	3.09 MW	113 m	103 m
2017	124	3.05 MW	106 m	99 m
2016	280	2.52 MW	102 m	102 m
2015	533	1.99 MW	100 m	91 m
2014	1,020	1.95 MW	97 m	86 m
2013	831	2.03 MW	88 m	84 m
2012	430	2.04 MW	88 m	85 m
2011	735	1.89 MW	87 m	80 m
2010	245	2.01 MW	87 m	79 m
2009	451	2.08 MW	84 m	80 m
2008	207	2.09 MW	85 m	80 m
2007	236	1.90 MW	80 m	80 m
2006	631	1.58 MW	78 m	76 m
2005	108	1.66 MW	80 m	79 m
2004	74	1.59 MW	74 m	66 m
2003	116	0.68 MW	47 m	50 m
2002	86	1.57 MW	74 m	64 m
2001	39	0.99 MW	54 m	48 m

See also: the largest wind farms in the world · the largest offshore wind farms · wind energy explained.